Ahsoka's Fleeing Thoughts
by Count Mallet
Summary: Renamed two-shot. Slightly AU. Ahsoka's thoughts when she jumps from the sewer pipe at the end of "The Jedi Who Knew Too Much" and again when she's unconscious at the end of "To Catch a Jedi." Rated Teen for references to dead clones, weapons set to kill, and some bizarre imagery when she's unconscious. Formerly titled "Where the Heart Is."
1. Where the Heart Is

_**Ahsoka's Fleeing Thoughts.**_

A _Star Wars: The Clone Wars_ fan fiction.

Chapter 1 – Where the Heart Is.

* * *

"You're the one / that's getting the blame."

[...]

"They started to show / some concern.

But by then / it was too late."

- Soft Cell, _Where the Heart Is._

* * *

"I know you do. Wish me luck," Ahsoka said.

Those were her last words to Anakin as she leaped out of the drain pipe. She was fortunate enough to land on top of a ship descending into Coruscant's underworld.

She looked up at her master's face. He seemed to be shocked that she jumped.

"_He shouldn't be too surprised. I couldn't surrender with armed clones coming to kill me, even if he promised to protect me,"_ she thought to herself. She continued to pace anxiously along the top of the ship she landed on. This was one time where she was glad she was skilled at Force leaping.

As the ship continued its descent and her master's face faded from her sight, she found herself flooded with emotions. Jedi were supposed to control her emotions. How could she control her emotions, though, when she felt more like a hunted animal than a Jedi Padawan? There was no way anyone falsely accused and betrayed as she had been could remain calm. Was there? It wasn't long before her mind raced with various thoughts.

"_Why is Tarkin blaming me for everything? Did he forget I saved him during the Citadel mission?"_ Ahsoka thought. She didn't know why he was so quick to accuse her for things she didn't do... crimes she would **never** commit. She also wondered why she didn't snarl at him when he caressed her chin while she was detained. No male deserved to touch her in that fashion, let alone him.

Some of the other details of what happened came to mind. When she planned to walk out of the prison, she encountered the dead clones. Why didn't anybody realize they died well before she discovered them. She also realized the same thing was true during her escape. She saw lightsaber wounds on three more clones. She couldn't have done it, but who did? Still, the fact everyone immediately assumed it had to be her was unnerving to her teenaged mind.

"_Why didn't Anakin do more for me? He's the Chosen One! Why didn't he get my side of the story first? And why did the clones set their weapons to kill? I saved some of those guys!" _was the next set of thoughts that flashed through her head. She wanted to believe she didn't hear the orders, but she could hear them clearly through the ventilation system thanks to her enhanced Togruta senses. She wasn't a violent cold-blooded criminal. Why were they told to treat her as such? True, they eventually switched to firing stun beams at her. Yet, she was still convinced she was going to be executed by clones in cold blood, without any type of trial … without any chance to try to prove her innocence. Surely, someone would realize she couldn't have done most of what she was accused of doing if they looked at the facts objectively and didn't jump to conclusions so quickly. She was oblivious to the fact her eyes were now tearing up.

"_Why didn't the Jedi do anything to investigate this? Master Yoda or Master Windu should have done something. Do they really think I'd do what I'm accused of? Why didn't they give me any kind of support?" _raced through Ahsoka's mind. Now, she was aware of the tears streaming down her cheeks, but she was too emotionally spent to care.

She wondered what the Jedi Council even knew about the situation. Did Tarkin tell **them** the lies, too? Were they smart enough to see through them? Would they have the sense to address the accusations logically and look for evidence, just like Anakin and she did when they investigated the bombing. Despite the rumors a Jedi **had** to be responsible, they conducted a thorough investigation and caught a suspect. Unfortunately Letta was murdered before she could tell anyone what really happened.

Ahsoka's next thoughts centered on Anakin's last words before she leaped. She hoped he was being honest when he explained he was denied access to her cell. His desire to help moments ago was sincere – she sensed it herself. But the clones heard their voices and started to close in on her again. She wanted to join her master. He said he believed her. Maybe he could convince Tarkin he was making a mistake. Maybe he could convince the council there seemed to be a larger conspiracy afoot. But it was a moot point now. Once she saw the clones, she knew she couldn't go with Anakin. She was convinced they would kill her the first chance they had, maybe even her master as well. At that point, she felt it was too late for him to help her in any meaningful way.

"_You've always been capable of seeing things clearly..."_ rang through her head next.

Barriss was right. But right now, Ahsoka didn't know **what** to think. She knew it was only a matter of time before the search for her would continue. And if the Jedi were convinced she was the horrible criminal she was made out to be, they would easily find her by tracking her Force signature.

Ahsoka did her best to dry her tears. The ship's descent was slowing down as it reached the bottom of the underworld.

"_Alright, Barriss, I'm going to figure who's doing this to me. I have no idea what to do, what to look for, or where to look, but I'll live up to your expectations... or die trying,"_ Ahsoka thought to herself.

Ahsoka always considered Barriss a close friend, maybe even her best friend. She knew Barriss wouldn't be happy to learn about her fleeing to the underworld, but Ahsoka couldn't let her best friend down. She would get the desperately-needed proof of her innocence. She would show everyone why she had to make a run for it. But most importantly, she would meet Barriss' expectations of her as a friend. There was no margin for error or failure now.

As Ahsoka leaped off the ship and ventured off on her own, she was more aware of the fact she only had one lightsaber. She could only hope that wouldn't be a problem should she be pursued again or have to ward off the sleemos that frequented her new environment. She could only hope she didn't have to stay here very long.

Now, she had to trust herself to come out of this largely unscathed.

* * *

**Disclaimers:** The story idea is my own. Walt Disney Company owns all Star Wars characters and concepts. Soft Cell (namely Marc Almond and Dave Ball) wrote the song _Where the Heart Is_.

**Author's Notes:** I wanted to write a story about Ahsoka's possible thoughts and mindset as she leaps into the underworld of Coruscant. We don't know what she was thinking. And we don't yet know what happens next. I wanted to write something that spans the gap between episodes.

Inspired by some of the lyrics to the song _Where the Heart Is_, I chose write a story that related some of those lyrics to Ahsoka's thoughts.

**Story Identifier:** S20-F16-M7c1. **Published:** 2013-02-19. **Revised: **2013-02-24.


	2. I Need a Savior (BBY Remix)

_**Ahsoka's Fleeing Thoughts.**_

A _Star Wars: The Clone Wars_ fan fiction.

Chapter 2 – I Need a Savior (BBY Remix).

* * *

Don't tell a lie / Don't be false or untrue / It all comes back to you.

- Real Life, _Send Me An Angel_.

* * *

"No, Wolffe! Let me explain!" were the last words she could speak before Commander Wolffe squeezed the trigger. Ahsoka wanted so much to tell him how Ventress set her up in an apparent double-cross. She wanted to tell her master what Barriss discovered. She hadn't lied to anyone so far and wanted her truth to be known. Unfortunately, whatever Wolffe shot at Ahsoka wouldn't give her that opportunity.

Ahsoka thought for sure she was about to die. Oddly, she felt relief when every nerve ending from the tips of her toes to the tips of her montrals rippled with electricity. It left a burning, buzzing, disconcerting feeling in her body. She had been stunned, not killed. The last thought she sensed before she collapsed disturbed her. Did Wolffe really take some sort of sadistic pride in being the one to shoot her?

"Easy with her!" Anakin chided the clones. He could tell some of them were pleased to finally capture Ahsoka by the way they roughly handled her already-injured self. It was obvious to his Force senses that they sincerely believed she killed a number of their brothers. Anakin also sensed some gloating on their part, but he couldn't do much about it. Voicing his disapproval now would make Ahsoka appear more guilty, not less. Rex helped Wolffe load and restrain Ahsoka for her return to the Jedi Temple. She was still unconscious and barely able to move, but the two troopers held her by her shoulders and placed her into a kneeling position between the two of them.

* * *

"_Who shoots the unarmed?" _raced though the unconscious Ahsoka's mind. She didn't know what happened to her lightsaber... if she'd ever see it... or if she'd even use one again.

Ahsoka's mind raced even more. She found herself stalked by some beast. Although she wasn't old enough to remember what an akul looked like, this beast seemed more gruesome and hideous. Its sight made an akul seem as harmless as a tooka. Why was it following her like she was prey?

"_Someone, save me!"_ Ahsoka thought. She wanted to say it... maybe scream it, but she couldn't. She swore she heard more footsteps. Who else was after her now? The next voice she heard was dark and ominous.

"_Give up!"_ it repeated several times.

Ahsoka couldn't give up. Nearly everyone that knew her likely thought she was a horrible criminal who should have been killed at the warehouse. She had to do whatever it took to prove them wrong. But now she had no way to do that. With no evidence, and nobody to believe her, she was doomed. Her luck had run out, so it seemed.

As her mind continued to race, she found herself running frantically. She had to get out of this situation. It was obvious she shouldn't have leaped into the underworld on her own, but she still felt it was the only thing she could do. She still thought it was the right choice if she had to choose again.

"_Help me now!"_ Ahsoka's mind echoed desperately.

Her running ended abruptly. She tripped over uneven ground and felt pain that left her no choice but to stay where she fell. There was no way she could run with an ankle that was sprained, if not broken. She loudly gasped and panted as she unsuccessfully tried to block the pain. The beast now stood over her bruised, beaten, and damaged body. She looked up with tears in her eyes, as if to silently plead for her life. Why did this beast sport some sort of amulet, let alone one associated with the Maker.

"_I never did believe anything spiritual, but I could use some divine intervention about now," _was all she could think when she spotted this jewelry.

The other person following her came into view. She couldn't make out the person's face as this mysterious being dismounted with a bow-caster. As she watched the person arm the bow-caster, she could only think that she was about to be put of her misery like the wounded animal she presently felt like.

Ahsoka noticed the beast turning to face the new person. As Ahsoka looked on helplessly, the bow-caster fired. Ahsoka's body jerked violently, but yet she didn't feel the shot hit her. There was no bleeding or additional pain. Instead, the beast had fallen to the ground. It was the one dying, not her.

The mysterious person helped her to her feet. She felt compelled to give a small kiss of appreciation to the hand that lifted her, but she didn't know why. The person helped her gingerly limp until they both mounted and left together. Was this her savior? Or, was she destined for more betrayal and disappointment? She needed to prove herself innocent, but time had all but run out now.

* * *

While Ahsoka remained unconscious, Anakin finished his report to the Jedi Council via hologram and the transmission faded. He **still** felt Ahsoka was innocent. He saw Ventress leading her by the shoulder, possibly against her will. He knew his padawan and he knew Ventress. He saw no way Ahsoka would work **with** her. The more Anakin thought, the more he felt that Ventress could be behind this plot. She was Force-sensitive and had performed her share of Force-chokes. She was agile enough to easily strike down clones. More telling, she had a reputation as an assassin and a strong dislike of Ahsoka. Bombing couldn't be too far out of character for her.

What concerned him most was that Master Plo seemed to actually believe Ahsoka had something to do with the nanodroids stacked in front of her injured self. He knew of Ahsoka's bond with Plo. He was thankful she was still not fully alert. If she had heard their communication with the High Council, she would have been devastated to hear Plo contemplating the possibility she might really be guilty of something now.

"_Don't worry, Snips. **I'll** get to the bottom of this, even if the Council won't believe you. And Force help Ventress when I find her again!"_ Anakin thought.

Ahsoka was in dire need of someone to help her. Anakin was more determined than ever to be her savior, even if meant disobeying the Jedi High Council. He had done it before. What was one more time when his padawan's life and reputation were at stake?

* * *

**Disclaimers:** The story idea is my own. Walt Disney Company owns all Star Wars characters & concepts. The Song _Send Me an Angel_ was originally sung by Real Life.

**Author's Notes:** When reading about the GFFA stun shooters, it appears they incapacitate someone similar to tasers. I don't know what it's like to be tased – and have no interest in finding out. But, I imagine it's not too far fetched to have some pretty wild or racing thoughts while unable to move voluntarily.

Most of the bizarre imagery comes from the video for _Send Me An Angel '83_ (the original version of the song). I plan to use the imagery from the '89 remix for an aftermath scene in the future of my _Ahsoka's Legacy_ series.

Because Real Life did so many remixes of this song, I had some fun with this chapter's title as well.

Based on the final season five arc so far, Ahsoka really could use someone to save her from execution or other unfortunate fate. Let's hope that happens.

This **will be** the final chapter to this story. Based on next week's season finale, I may write a separate fic if I dislike Ahsoka's in-series fate.

**Story Identifier:** S20-F16-M7c2. **Posted:** 2013-02-24.


End file.
